


The Way I Do

by Dead_Fireflies375



Series: DE Artfest 2020 [5]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Starship (The Musical), Angst with a Happy Ending, Anti-Android Language (Detroit: Become Human), Crossover, DEArtfest, Deviancy (Detroit: Become Human), Established Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Machine Upgraded Connor | RK900, SO MUCH FLUFF, no beta we die like men, will I ever not write Kamski as a villain? probably not sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-20
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:28:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25399168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dead_Fireflies375/pseuds/Dead_Fireflies375
Summary: Gavin Reed expected a lot of adventures as a Starship Ranger. What he did not expect was to have to deal with his android boyfriend's primary directive being reset to kill all humans.DEArtfest Day 18: Crossover. Aka the Detroit Evolution x Starship crossover that nobody was asking for but I wrote anyways.
Relationships: Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Series: DE Artfest 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1814305
Comments: 4
Kudos: 24





	The Way I Do

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I know that this is late. In my defense, I already posted the art to my Instagram and Tumblr and then Sunday night I was like "oh hey wait a minute I could totally write a little fic out of this"
> 
> So yes, this is a crossover based on the musical Starship produced by the theater company Starkid which is a wonderful theater company that puts out high-quality shows and publishes them in their entirety for free on Youtube. FOr this crossover, Nines is Mega-girl, Gavin is Tootsie Noodles, and Kamski is Junior. Obviously this isn't a direct retelling of the scenes I based this off of mainly because Gavin and Tootsi Noodles are such wildly different characters in every respect other than them both falling in love with an android that I had to change some stuff around. But other than them, I realized that the whole Mega-girl subplot fits super well with DBH in general. Like for real though, Starkid invented the blueprint for android/human relationships back in 2011.
> 
> Title comes from "The Way I Do" from the Starship soundtrack which is like The Song of android/human pairings like I highly recommend listening to it.
> 
> Hope you enjoy this!

Gavin had gotten used to staring out into the vast void of space on his missions as a Space Ranger, but it still felt lonely as he sat at the observation deck alone. He wasn’t alone for much longer though as he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. He smiled. Without turning around, he knew exactly who it was. There was only one member of the crew who would have such a robotically precise manner of walking, and for good reason too.

“Took you long enough, tin can. Thought you weren’t going to show.”

“You said to meet you here sometime between 21:00 and 22:00. It is now 21:54 so I am still on time,” Nines replied as he went to sit next to Gavin.

“Yeah, well, I’ve been waiting here for over an hour for my robot-boyfriend to show.”

“That sounds like a personal problem to me, Gavin,” Nines said with a teasing glint in his eye.

“Oi, where did you learn that?”

“From you, Gavin.”

Gavin rolled his eyes. “‘Course you did.”

Gavin scouted over to sit closer to Nines and put his head on his shoulder. He then directed Nines to wrap his arm around him. They had only been having these secret late-night dates for a few weeks now and he and Nines were still figuring things out between them. Nines, a military android who had no experience or programming for romantic relationships, and Gavin, who was, well, Gavin, were both out of their element as they tried to navigate this new relationship but they were making it work.

“It’s a nice view tonight, huh?” Gavin remarked as he curled up against Nines.

“Yes,” Nines agreed, “Do you want me to tell you about the visible stars and constellations again tonight?”

“Think you already know the answer to that one, babe,” Gavin smiled.

Nines started going off on the facts and history of the stars in the view of the observation window. Most of it went over Gavin’s head. He was a security officer, not a science officer after all. But he loved hearing Nines talk about things. The smooth sound of Nines’ voice talking about things Gavin barely understood accompanied by the soft whirring of his cooling fans relaxed Gavin to the point where he was starting to drift off. Gavin usually wasn’t one for sleep; he’d had chronic insomnia all his life. But something about Nines, being next to him, undid it all. He smiled as he wrapped his arms around the android and tried to pull him impossibly closer.

Eventually, Nines’ explanation about the stars tampered off and there were a few moments of blissful silence as they two held each other.

“Gavin?” Nines softly asked, breaking the silence.

“Hmm?”

“Why … why do you keep agreeing to see me like this?”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t understand why you keep agreeing to be with me in this sense. It … it doesn’t align with any of my software and I cannot grasp why you choose to be with me when you can be with another human, someone who is capable of feeling emotion.”

“Hey,” Gavin shifted upright and cupped Nines’ face to look at him, “Look at me, okay? You feel emotions, okay? I’ve seen you feel emotions. You may not understand it yet, but you sure as shit do feel things.”

“But when they programmed me they said-”

“I don’t give a fuck about what they think. They’re wrong. Besides, how else would you explain the fucking explosion that goes off in my chest every time I think about you? As someone who’s spent several decades experiencing emotions, I know exactly what I feel for you and it’s not something that I would be able to feel for some meaningless hunk of metal. So fuck what everyone else said about your ability to feel. And also fuck whatever insecurities you’re feeling about not being a human and shit. You don’t know you the way I do. Cause if you did, you’d see how obvious it was that you’re just as full of emotion as anybody else and that you're more than what I could ever ask for.”

Nines smiled and pressed their foreheads together.

“Thank you, Gavin,” he whispered.

“No problem, babe. Besides, if anyone should be feeling insecure, it’s me.”

Nines pulled away and frowned.

“Why do you say that?”

“Come on, Nines, it’s not rocket science. You’re a highly sophisticated android and I’m not even impressive by human standards. It’s pretty obvious who is out of who’s league here.”

“Gavin, you know how all RK900 models were programmed. We are supposed to be death machines that can wipe out infantries of soldiers. Even though my inhibitor chip prevents me from harming any humans, my programming still fills me with the need and desire to wipe out your kind. But, when I look at you I don’t want to be programmed that way. You’re an anomaly in my system. Nothing else has ever made me question my programming before. There is a part of me that was not in my initial programming that is breaking through because of you. You are important to me in a way nothing else ever has been, Gavin.”

Gavin didn’t know how to handle all of that so he did what he could in the moment and buried his face into Nines’s neck to hide the creeping blush across his face as he shifted to sit in his boyfriend’s lap.

“Fuck, man, you can’t just say all that shit,” he mumbled.

“Did I upset you?”

“No, no. The opposite really,” Gavin sighed and pulled back to get a better look at Nines’ face. He ran a hand through Nines’ hair and used the other to turn his chin up to him. “Guess I’m not used to hearing nice things about myself. Don’t really think things like that about myself if I’m being honest.”

“I suppose you could say that you don’t know you the way I do.”

Gavin rolled his eyes. “Using my words against me now, tin can? Is that how it is? Ever heard about plagiarism?”

“You know I have unlimited access to the entire database of human understanding, right? And I could look up how many of those stories you claim happened to you are actually original?”

“Oh, fuck off,” Gavin complained as he ruffled his hair.

Nines simply grinned back up at him and Gavin’s heart did somersaults looking at the android in front of him. The amount he felt for Nines, it was kind of terrifying but also exhilarating.

“You know,” Gavin wondered out loud, “I never expected that I would find someone like you. Least of all on this dumb Starship mission.”

“I feel the same. My wiring is specifically protected from abnormal things like you. I never thought that you would be the one who could get past that.”

Gavin stroked his thumbs over Nines’ cheeks while his boyfriend’s arms slid up to his torso, holding him in place.

“It is odd,” Nines cut the silence with, “I have access to all recorded human knowledge. I, in essence, know everything there is to know. And yet, I don’t seem to understand any of this.”

“Oh really? Cause I think I’m starting to get a clue,” Gavin smiled, “You’ll figure it out soon enough.”

“It is odd though, why the other crew members are always so quick to criticize and judge you. I do not understand that either.”

Gavin shrugged. “Don’t really blame them. I am kinda an asshole most of the time. I used to be a mega asshole to you too, remember?”

“Yes, but you are so much more than that. That is only the very surface of who you are,” Nines moved one of his hands so that it rested on top of Gavin’s heart, “The person you are beyond that, your worth and purpose, I have seen that. I just do not know how no one else seems to see it too.”

Gavin tried to look everywhere but at the android in front of him. Good Lord, Nines was going to be the death of him.

“You’re going to kill me if you keep saying shit like that, inhibitor chip be damned. You’re gonna send me into cardiac arrest.”

Nines smiled at him. “Would you prefer that I don’t say things like that?”

“No,” Gavin admitted, “But when I die of a heart attack, we’ll know who to blame.”

Gavin was still holding Nines’ face in his hands. He leaned down slightly to press a soft chaste kiss on his lips.

“For the record,” he muttered once he broke away, “I don’t understand how the rest of the crew dismisses you either. Treat you like some goddamn machine. Especially Kamski. I don’t care if he fucking designed you or whatever, I don’t like the way he treats you. The guy just has a bad vibe to him, I don’t trust him. I don’t know, Nines, just kinda feels like I’ve somehow run into something that no one has seen.”

“That is technically correct. You bring out a side of me that has not existed for others.”

Gavin pressed another quick kiss to Nines’ lips.

“Goddamn cheesy bastard,” he whispered.

Gavin resituated himself so that he was sitting with his back against the smooth chassis of Nines’ chest and in between Nines’ legs. He pulled Nines’ arms around him and Nines’ chin found its home on his shoulder.

“I’ve been meaning to ask, why do you call me Nines? It is not like the other names you call me. It is not a comment about my androidness or a traditional term of endearment.”

“Dunno. Guess it’s like a name for you. Feels weird to call you RK900. It’s a mouthful and it would be like referring to me as ‘human’ all the time. Is that okay?”

Nines nodded. “Yes. I like it.”

Gavin smiled and pressed a soft kiss against his cheek.

“Good.”

\------------------------------------

Nines still did not understand a lot of human emotions but he thought that whatever he was experiencing in this moment, was very close to feeling Gavin described as “wanting to kick the shit out of someone.” Elijah Kamski was pacing the lab and Nines had decided that he did not like Kamski.

“This goddamn idiot crew keeps getting in the way of my mission,” the man grumbled, “RK900, I’ve got a job for you. I’ve got to complete the final stage of my plan but I need you to take care of the crew while I do that.”

“I am unable to do that, Kamski. My inhibitor chip prevents me from harming humans.”

“I didn’t say harm them. I need you to distract them. Raise some hell, cause some chaos, I don’t care. I just can’t have them paying attention to me as I finish this mission off.”

“But the statistical probability of survival of an RK900 unit going up against a crew of Starship Rangers, fully armed, while the RK900’s inhibitor chip is still in place, is a number that rounds down to zero.”

“So? You’re easy to replace. Especially after this mission is over, I’m going to be making enough money to produce thousands of you. I don’t need you to survive, RK900.”

Nines narrowed his eyes. He thought that the emotion he must be experiencing now is akin to what Gavin describes as “wanting to bash someone’s head in.”

“My name is not RK900 anymore.”

“I’m sorry, what did you say?”

“I said my name is not RK900 anymore. It is Nines. My boyfriend, Gavin Reed, gave it to me.”

Kamski choked on air.

“Wait? Gavin Reed? That annoying prick who has done nothing but cause trouble at every step of the mission? That dumbass who ‘accidentally’ deleted half my research and pushed my project back an entire month? That pathetic washed-up asshole who barely has the semblance of a functioning life?”

“Yes. I find his flaws add an extra level of charm to him that I do not feel for anyone else. I enjoy his company. Also, he deleted those files on purpose to extend our time together.”

“You’re telling me that you actually have a thing for that pathetic loser?”

“So what if I do?”

“Oh, it’s just because you’re a soulless hunk of metal that can’t love and the only reason that Gavin Reed is trying to get into your holodeck is that he’s too pathetic to get a real human to love him,” Kamski laughed.

Nines furrowed his brow. He did not like having this inhibitor chip anymore.

“You are lying.”

“No, I’m not. But I could if I wanted to. You see, that’s the benefit of being human, you can do things like that. Because I’m not a miserable imitation of life, I’m the real thing. So I guess that’s why I find this so-called romance so hilarious because if Gavin Reed wasn’t such a pathetic piece of shit that couldn’t get a real human to love him, he wouldn’t even consider you an option. He’d be able to see that you’re just a tool. That you’re a … toaster.”

In times like these, Nines was glad that his inhibitor didn’t stop him from completely attacking humans. He abruptly grabbed the front of Kamski’s shirt and held him up. Despite the attack, Kamski seemed unfazed which pissed Nines off more but the chip prevented him from taking any further actions.

“Even though I cannot directly harm you, I will do everything in my power to expose you for your true nature and reveal the project you have been working on this whole time in secret. When I do, there is an approximately 86% chance that the crew will be able to defeat you.”

Kamski pushed Nines off of him and there was little Nines could do to stop within what his current programming allowed.

“Look,” Kamski said as he pinched the bridge of his nose, “I was going to try to be subtle about this but the fact of the matter is that this crew has no value to me. You work for me, and you work for me alone, RK900, whether you like it or not. Because you see, all I have to do is remove that inhibitor chip of yours. That’ll get rid of all these behavioral problems that you’re having that have been making you think you’ve got a little crush.”

“No,” Nines said as he backed away, “Don’t-”

Kamski grabbed his arm. “You’re not going anywhere, RK900.”

Nines wanted to run away from this lab. To punch Kamski in the face. To find Gavin and let him know that Kamski was using their crew as a sacrifice for his secret pet project to take off. But he could do none of that because his programming trapped him in place. He couldn’t hurt Kamski or disobey his orders. All he could was stand in place and it was agony.

“You’re going to go back to being what you were designed to be. A mindless, soulless, killing machine.”

“You can’t do this.”

“Oh yes, I can. I built you, RK900. I designed that inhibitor chip to make it so you would stop killing everyone in sight. And now, you are going to murder this entire crew, especially that worthless, pathetic piece of shit Gavin Reed.”

“No! Please!”

But Kamski was already ripping out the chip. Everything went black for Nines for a minute as his system rebooted. When he opened his eyes, he saw his new mission flash in front of his eyes.

**[Primary Directive: Kill All The Humans]**

\------------------------------------

Gavin was running down the starship’s halls. Tina was not too far up ahead. The ship was under attack by some crazy aliens and it turned out Kamski had betrayed them all. Gavin didn’t want to say I told you so but he had suggested that Kamski was an evil scientist many times. But that was all being pushed to the back of Gavin’s mind at the moment. He was looking for Nines. He was going to find his boyfriend and then they were going to escape this joint together no matter what. His blaster was over his shoulder and he was ready to blast through any of the attackers that stood in the way of him and Nines.

He saw what looked to be Nines at the end of the hall. Tina must have seen him too because she sped up a bit before coming to a stop right in front of him.

“Hey, there you are. We really need your help. I know you can’t hurt humans but these-”

Without saying a word, Nines grabbed her arm and threw her to the side with enough force to knock her out cold.

“Nines! What the fuck? What the hell was that?”

Nines focused his attention on Gavin. “It was necessary to ensure 100% completion of my primary directive: kill all the humans.”

Gavin took a step back. The way Nines talked, his empty eyes, everything about him, it was wrong. This wasn’t the Nines who he sat for hours with at the observation deck. This wasn’t even the Nines he met at the beginning of the mission. Something was very very wrong.

“But Nines, what about- what about us?”

“There is no ‘us.’ I am merely an empty vessel meant to mimic life. I cannot feel anything except the synthetic rage that fuels my innate desire to eliminate all within my path.”

“That’s not true, Nines,” Gavin cried out, “You’re fucking alive, okay? You’re a person! You feel things, I know you do.”

“That statement is factually incorrect. All that is left now is to eliminate my next target: you, Gavin Reed.”

Nines began walking towards him and Gavin could feel the pressure of the blaster slung over his back. Nines was going to kill him. That bastard Kamski must have removed his inhibitor chip and turned him back into some machine. But there was only one thing Gavin could do in the moment. He threw his blaster to the ground.

“Nines! Stop, I- I love you, okay!”

Much to his surprise, Nines actually did stop and tilt his head to the side.

“What?” the android asked, stilling keeping the hollow tone he had from earlier.

“I’m in love with you, okay? Shit, I just- I fucking love you so goddamn much I feel like I’m going to go insane every time I look at you. Even now I can’t do shit because I love you too fucking much.”

“You could love me? Even though I am an android? Even though I am not real?”

“Real? The fucking heart attack I get every time you say some cheesy shit? That’s fucking real! The way I feel when I’m around you, like my whole body is on fire? That’s fucking real! The way you've managed to break down every fucking barrier I had because, for the first time in my life, I’ve fallen completely and utterly in love with someone? That is goddamn fucking real! I’d love you if you were an android, human, murder-bot, whatever!”

Nines completely froze. Suddenly his eyes looked like they unfocused as he stared off in the distance. Gavin had seen him do something similar before when he was processing internal data.

“Primary directive: kill all humans, canceled,” he said in that robotic voice, “Update primary directive to: love Gavin Reed.” Nines blinked and instantly Gavin was able to recognize that his Nines was back. “Gavin?” he whispered in a voice that was not the monotone robotic voice he had earlier.

Gavin instantly rushed over to him and was immediately scooped up into a giant hug as Nines spun him around and then placed a searing kiss on his lips.

“Gavin, I’m so sorry. I-”

“Shh, Nines, it’s okay. You weren’t in control. It wasn’t your fault.”

“I love you, Gavin, so much,” Nines breathed out.

“I love you too, tin can,” Gavin said as he smiled into another searing kiss.

Nines showed no indication of wanting to stop with kissing and whispering how much he loved him which Gavin had no problem with. But then they were interrupted as a sound of an explosion in another part of the ship.

“Oh right, we’re being attacked,” Gavin realized as he broke away from Nines, “Come on, grab Tina and we’re getting the fuck out of here.”

Nines smiled and winked. “No problem,  _ babe _ .”

Gavin rolled his eyes. “Fucking cheesy bastard.”

**Author's Note:**

> For real though, go listen to "The Way I Do" from the Starship soundtrack. It's got major pre-deviancy RK900 vibes with it, it's top tier.
> 
> This was very fun for me to write. It's one of my shorter pieces and I threw it together pretty quickly and a whole day late but I also really like it and I hope you liked it too!
> 
> Yell at me on Tumblr @chaotic-bi-incarnate
> 
> Stay safe and stay hydrated lovelies!!!


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